President Lee: "Deep Regret Over Election Management Flaws... Reasons Must Be Clarified and Accountability Ensured"

President Lee Presides Over Chief Secretary Meeting on June 4
"Swift and Reliable Countermeasures Urged"

On June 4, President Lee Jae-myung expressed his deep regret regarding the ballot shortage incident that occurred during the 9th nationwide local elections, stating, "It is extremely regrettable that such an incomprehensible oversight has occurred in election management, which must be carried out with the utmost rigor in a democratic republic."

At the Chief Presidential Secretary meeting held at the Blue House on the same day, President Lee said, "Yesterday, it was reported that residents in some areas of Seoul experienced significant confusion and inconvenience due to a shortage of ballots," emphasizing his concerns.

President Lee Jae-myung is reviewing materials at the Chief Presidential Secretary meeting held at the Blue House on June 4, 2026. Photo by Yonhap News.

President Lee went on to instruct, "Relevant agencies must exercise all the authority and responsibility vested in the administration to clearly identify the cause of the problem, and if there is any accountability, it must be clearly enforced. Furthermore, I urge that reliable and appropriate measures be swiftly established to ensure that not even the slightest infringement on citizens' suffrage ever occurs again."

He also said, "Regardless of the competition during the election process, both the ruling and opposition parties are partners who represent the sovereign people, tasked with safeguarding citizens' lives and pioneering a better future for the nation. Now that the election is over, I ask that the political community work together to achieve the substantive improvement of people's livelihoods, balanced regional development, and national unity, as mandated by the sovereign people."

He stressed, "The government will also humbly accept the will of the people as expressed in the local elections and will actively cooperate with the newly elected local governments, regardless of party affiliation. We will dedicate all our efforts to advancing the lives of all citizens and the development of the Republic of Korea."

Previously, on June 3, voting was temporarily suspended at 14 polling stations, including Songpa, Gangnam, Gwangjin, and Dongjak, due to a shortage of ballots. Some voters abandoned voting, while others received waiting tickets and were able to vote after 6 p.m. In the case of the 2nd polling station in Jamsil 7-dong, waiting tickets were distributed, but some recipients did not actually vote, leading to an extension of the voting period until 10 p.m. and encouragement to vote via apartment broadcast announcements.

In relation to this, Heo Cheol-hoon, Secretary General of the National Election Commission, issued a public apology at 9 p.m. the previous day, stating, "The National Election Commission caused significant confusion and concern among the public during the voting process on June 3 due to ballot shortages at some polling stations. We deeply apologize for causing inconvenience to citizens who visited polling stations to exercise their precious right to vote, and for undermining public trust in the fair management of the election. We accept full responsibility for this incident."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.